At a strategic stakeholders meeting, Lagos Deputy Governor Dr. Obafemi Hamzat raised concerns over the state’s vulnerability to climate change, warning that without urgent measures, Lagos could face submersion.
Citing examples like New York City and London, where people are relocating due to rising sea levels, Hamzat emphasized the need for better land management and stricter physical planning laws.
He highlighted Lagos’ geographical risks, including extreme heat, high rainfall, and rising sea levels, as existential threats that require immediate attention. Hamzat called for legal reforms and better understanding among lawyers and judges to secure the state’s future.
He said, “So the biggest challenge is how do we manage our laws? So when you say the land-owning family, what does that mean? Should we not define it? “To build the red line, we paid compensation of N9bn without doing anything, we’ve not bought anything, but just to move people away and that’s why most states cannot do it, it’s not possible. So, Lagos is the only state in the world that has done something like that, like a rail on our balance sheet, others, Federal must be involved.
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“In the UK, fourteen per cent of London city, the rest is the Federal Government, New York underground, the same thing, so how do we manage our lands? If our ministry of justice, our lawyers and our judges don’t have this proper understanding that the future of our children is threatened when these cases come to court, then we are missing the point.
“Lagos State, because of our geography, because of our population, because of our size, we are 22 million, we occupy only 0.4% or less than 0.38% of the land mass of Nigeria, and we are responsible for 10% of the people, so there is a mismatch and we have 180-kilometer shoreline, so we are surrounded by water. Today, Lagos, New York City, they are sinking.”
He warned that without decisive action, Lagos could face serious consequences in the next 20-25 years, similar to global cities grappling with climate threats.
Credible News.ng
